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HOW DID CHARLEY DENEEN AND
ROY WEST GET RICH?
Roy O. West, Charles S. Deneen
and other millionaire politicians who
built up their fortunes ou of playing
the game of politics, are asked by
William Hale Thompson the ques
tion: "Where did you get it?"
Thompson said to a Day Book re
porter today that West, Deneen and
others jiow raising the issue of Lori-
merism, got their millions through"
playing politics with Billy Lonmer.
Some of the evidence put in by at
torneys for Lorimer when the U. S.
Senate investigation of Lorimer was
on. will be brought out before the
primary campaign is over, it was said
at Thompson headquarters.
One exhibit to be brought out will be
the telegram which Deneen, then gov
ernor of niinios, admitted receiving
from Roy O. West, then chairman of
the Board of Review of Cook county.
The telegram was sent to Deneen the
day after Lorimer's election and read:
"My Dear Senator: I just stepped
in to see how your pulse is. Con
gratulations. Roy O. West."
It was known at the time that Lor
imer could not have been elected as
United States senator without the
backing of the Deneen men in the leg
islature. The above telegram has al
ways been taken as one of the indi
cations that West and other Repub
lican higher-ups working with De
neen knew that Deneen traded with
Lorimer and there was -an explicit
understanding that at the next sen
atorial election Deneen would be
elected U. S. senator to join Lorimer
at Washington.
From Roy 0. West has never come
any explanation of why he sent De
neen a telegram of congratulation,
addressing Deneen as "My Dear Sen
ator" the day after Billy Lorimer was
elected. Nor from Deneen has there
ever come any statement on what
Roy 0. West meant by the telegram.
Nor in any Chicago newspaper has,
there been any editorial discussion
of what was in Roy 0. West's head
and Deneen's head at that time.
When Judge Hanecy drew from De
neen on the witness stand the admis
sion that he (Deneen) had received
the telegram, Hanecy stopped his
questions and did not press the point
as to what Roy O. West meant by
the telegram.
"If these millionaires want to raise
the issue of Lorimerism, I am ready
for them," said Thompson today. "I
will show some of them to be the
dirtiest double-crossers that ever
went into politics. They got their
money after Billy Lorimer gave them
their start in politics.
"Lorimer got too much power .to
suit them. They wanted to dominate
the party. And they knewthe only
way they could do it was1 to destroy
Lorimer. Now they've turned to be
liars and double-crossers of the man
who made them politically.
"As alderman I was not bossed. As
mayor I will not be bossed. If I am
elected there's nobody going to walk
into the mayor's office and tell me
where to get off. I will call these
liars and double-crossers who want
to make Lorimerism an issue. I will
show their got their money after Lor
imer built them up in politics."
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